Rep. Carl Isett won't run again

Lubbock will have at least one freshman in the state House next session as legislators redraw political maps and grapple with a tough state budget climate.

State Rep. Carl Isett, a Lubbock Republican who has represented the city for 16 years, will focus on his U.S. Navy career and his family instead of seeking re-election this spring, a spokeswoman said Friday.

He did not return calls for comment. Spokeswoman Cathy Landtroop said the representative did not believe in staying in office forever.

"He has never been or believed in being a career politician," Landtroop said.

Lubbock voters elected Isett in 1996 to fill the space left by now-Sen. Robert Duncan's successful run for the Senate. The small district does not stretch far outside the Lubbock city limits.

Isett's wife, Cheri, stepped in as his replacement in the 2005 session when the U.S. naval officer deployed overseas.

Isett is a conservative who served on the state's powerful appropriations committee, which handled all legislation moving money out of the Texas treasury. Former House Speaker Tom Craddick, R-Midland, tapped Isett in 2007 to head the commission charged with reviewing state agencies.

His service was not without controversy.

The Texas Ethics Commission fined him $6,400 last year and ordered him to reimburse $25,538 to his political campaign.

The agency concluded that he had used more than $30,000 in campaign donations to pay his wife for bookkeeping services. State law prohibits elected officials and candidates for public office from using political donations to pay themselves or family members for services rendered.

Friday, colleagues focused on his work as a knowledgeable, at times stubborn but well-respected force in the Texas House.

"I think it's a real loss for West Texas, and more so for the Legislature," Craddick said.

Craddick named Isett chairman of the Sunset Commission in 2007. The panel reviews the performance of two dozen state agencies and recommends whether to reform or retire each.

Craddick said Isett's command of finance and spending in Texas - better than anyone in the legislature - drew the former speaker to appoint him chairman of the influential commission.

Isett did not spend much time speaking on the House floor, he said. But when he did, it mattered.

"When he did get up to say something, people listened, because they knew he was informed on the issues," Craddick said. "He was followed by a lot of people. A lot of people really listened to what he had to say. That's what you need when you're a legislator; you need a following by the other members if you're ever going to accomplish anything."

Isett's decision surprised Rep. Joe Pickett, D-El Paso, who had worked with him on major transportation legislation expected to pass in the next session.

The Lubbock representative never made his stance on an issue a mystery, something Pickett appreciated even if he disagreed, he said.

"He's pretty persistent," Pickett said. "He doesn't vary off of what he's decided is the right thing to do. It's always good when you're on the same page with someone like that."

Isett informed his staff with a phone call yesterday. He also called Craddick and Pampa Republican Rep. Warren Chisum.

"He was kind of sad to leave," Chisum said. "It's big. He was a good thinker, good conservative, well respected. He'll be hard to replace."

Chisum, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee in 2007, praised Isett's financial acumen. The representative also took with him something a freshman legislator couldn't be taught ahead of a session, he said.

"A first-time person down there is not going to have seniority and not going to have the historical background," Chisum said.

State revenue has weakened, and Texas will bring in just enough to balance its 2010-2011 budget with less than 1 percent to spare.

Legislators will deal with that while redrawing new political maps based on the state census, a process fraught with consequence for the slow-growing Texas Panhandle.

"We're going to lose Texas House seats, maybe a Senate seat, and some consolidation on a congressional seat," Craddick said. "It's important for us to have people there that can help us, that are respected by the other members and that members will follow."

Every session has a critical issue that makes it tough for a veteran legislator to step down, Landtroop said.

"There's never a good time," Landtroop said. "When is a good time?"

West Texas voters haven't feared casting aside political seniority in the past, said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University.

Voters favored newcomer Randy Neugebauer over political heavyweight and Democrat Charlie Stenholm in 2004, even as key changes to farm legislation critical to the region's agribusiness loomed.

Isett's timing leaves little more than two weeks to find a replacement. No challengers had announced any intent to seek House District 84; candidates must file to run in the spring party primary by Jan. 4.

Democratic party chairwoman Pam Brink did not return a call for comment. Lubbock Republican Party Chairman Chris Winn was confident Friday the his party could find candidates.

"The party is just as surprised as anyone, I think," Winn said. "There's going to be a healthy process here in the next two weeks. I'm confident that our young, motivated leadership in this community will come up with several individuals who can file and likely be a voice for West Texas and for Lubbock."